Cammie and the Circle
by silvershadow98
Summary: Cammie is caught by the Circle and tortured. She eventually finds her way home, after 6 long, painful months. Her friends can tell something is wrong, and don't know if Cammie will stay like this forever, or run away... again.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**I do not own any of the characters, places or anything else in this story aside from the story line. All rights belong to Ally Carter. Also, it says in book number 5 that Cammie has dishwasher blonde hair, but in this version she has black hair. It relates to the cave she enters. SPOILER ALERT! This may give away stuff in the 1****st****, 2****nd****, 3****rd****, 4****th**** and 5****th**** books. Also, I will not be putting how I do not own anything at the start of each chapter, but I am repeating it now. I do not own ANYTHING and all rights belong to the wonderful and talented Ally Carter – my writing inspiration. Please read and comment because this is my first fan fiction and I feel really, really nervous about whether people will read it or not. Also, I got the part in the library (Dan) from another fan fiction story but now I can't find the same story so I can't say who owns it but I promise that I do not take credit for Dan or what he does to Cammie in the first part, but the second part was completely my own imagination. Also, Cammie is often portrayed as 'weak' in this story, making Zach save the day whilst she seems like a damsel in distress. I hope Ally Carter/Gallagher Girl fans do not mind too much but I always enjoy reading a book when the main girl gets hurt or something happens and the guy (who she is in love with) saves the day, so I hope you guys like it too. Okay, I'm babbling now, but please remember to comment!**

I walk through the library, lined with old, velvet covered books and paperback novels to the fireplace at the very back, beside two tall white windows with billowing white curtains. I settle down into the worn out sofa and stare at the crackling flames.

A minute later I feel a hand on my shoulder. I instantly know it's not Liz, Bex or Macey, or even Zach, Grant or Jonas (the Blackthorne boys are staying for a week – again). The hand is unfamiliar, and I know I haven't talked to that person before.

I reach up and yank the person's hand off my shoulder, slamming them into the ground before me. I twist their arm behind their back and sit between their shoulder blades, pinning them to the ground. I hear a gasp of pain and I tighten my hold on their arm.

"Who are you?" I hiss. "What do you want?" It's definitely a Blackthorne boy, I can tell from the short, scruffy, brown hair, navy shorts and white school shirt.

"Calm down, Cammie," my prisoner says. "It's me; Dan. You know, from your Cove Ops class?"

I release their arm and stand up. "Oh, Dan, sorry," I say. He picks himself up, massaging his left shoulder.

"That's cool," he says. He starts walking towards me, slowly and deliberately. I don't move, but when he gets closer and closer, I start taking slow steps backwards.

"So, how are you today, Cammie?" he asks. I feel myself push up against the old rose-patterned walls and stop abruptly. He places an arm up against the wall behind me and leans into me. I can smell his breath (it smells like Chinese food) as his face gets closer and closer to mine.

"Dan, what are you doing?" I ask nervously.

"Only giving us what we both want," he says.

I kick my foot out. It collides with his shins, but he just ignores it. He grabs my wrist and spins me around so that I'm facing the window. He rests his chin on my shoulder and starts swaying.

"You pig," I say disgustingly, as I whip away from him. I dart past him, but he grabs me, running his hand up my legs. I tug away but he draws me back into his arms. From there I tug him over my shoulder and he lands on the ground. I start to run but he pulls me back to him, jumping up from the ground.

I see Zach poking his head out from around the corner. "Zach!" I call out.

He laughs. "Nice try, Cammie, but you're going to have to do better if you want me to feel jealous." He turns away, still smiling.

"Zach, no, please, I'm not- Get away from me you jerk!" I tug away from him, but he spins me around to face him, pushing me up against the wall. He's about to kiss me when someone pulls him back, flipping him onto the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Jeez," he says, rubbing his head. An angry looking Bex, flanked by Liz and Macey, stand behind him. He scrambles up and leaves, shaking his head.

"Cammie!" Liz yells, jumping on me.

"Are you okay?" Bex says. I look down at my hands, which are slightly shaking. I nod, slowly, biting my lip.

"You don't look okay," Macey points out.

"Zach," I mumble. "He saw me. I called out for him, but he thought I was trying to make him jealous."

"Come on," Macey says. She slings her arm over my shoulders, and Liz does the same on my other side. I can feel my eyes welling up with tears but I blink them back furiously. Furious at myself, for showing a weakness, furious at Dan, for what he did, and furious at Zach, for laughing and walking away.

Bex leads the way, angrily storming ahead and looking down every corridor on the way to our dormitory. When we're just a hallway or two away from our dormitory, I see Bex shouting "You!" and jumping on someone, sending them falling to the ground.

A second later she gets up and points to the person on the ground. "Explain!" she growls.

"What do you mean?" Zach answers. By now Liz, Macey and I have caught up to Bex and Zach.

Bex points to me. "About Cammie, dufus. How could you leave her there while she was being harassed by that retard Dan?"

Zach's eyes flicker over to me. His eyes widen as he takes in my wild hair, red eyes and crumpled blouse. "I didn't- Cammie, are you okay?" I look down.

"No, she is not okay!" Bex screams at him.

"I thought she was just trying to make me jealous!" Zach protests. He gets up, keeping a wary eye on Bex. "Cammie, I am so so sorry!"

"How could you, Zach?" I finally burst out. Tears overwhelm my eyes and start sliding down my cheeks and dripping onto the stone floor. "I called out for you and you just laughed and walked away!"

"Cammie, I didn't know- I thought you were-"

I run away, shrugging off Macey and Liz. I can hear footsteps behind me as I run through the corridors, my hair whipping out around me as I wipe my eyes dry. I can hear Bex and Zach arguing; Bex sounding loud and angry, Zach sounding small and weak.

When I reach our dormitory, I race in. I take off my shoes and socks and throw them onto my bed. I run into the bathroom and swing the door shut, locking it behind me. I push the clothes bin and the toilet paper holder up against the door, piling them on top of one another to block the door handle from being picked open from the other side.

I hear Liz and Macey slam into the door, banging their fists against it. "Cammie!" they called. "Are you okay? Cammie, please come out. Zach didn't realise! Please, Cammie!"

At this, I burst into tears. I slide up onto the marble countertop and curl up into a ball. Soon Bex joins in, and then Zach. Eventually they stop, and I can hear them tackling Zach. After a couple of shouts of pain, I can hear Bex, Liz and Macey talking on the bed. Soon they disappear and I check my watch. It's about time for dinner.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

My eyes start to dry and I let my mind wander. Eventually I start thinking about the Circle, and why it's so important they get me. Then I start to think about the danger I'm putting my friends and family in. I sneak out of the bathroom and change from my school uniform with the annoying plaid skirt and blue blouse to some comfortable skinny jeans and a black t-shirt. I pull on a black hoodie that drowns me and tie on my awesome new black boots with the ties going all the way to the top.

I search through Liz's drawers until I find a set of comm's units and a pad of paper and a pen. I quickly scrawl a note addressed to Bex, Macey and Liz. I can't put you guys in any more danger, so I'm going after the Circle. Once they have what they want from me, they can stop going after me and almost hurting everyone I love. Maybe I can even put an end to all this and let us lead normal lives at the Gallagher Academy. Well, as normal as girls from a spy school can possibly have. I love you guys so much, and please don't come after me, or tell my mum. I'm planning on being back before the end of the month, so just make up that I went out for something. I don't know. Stay safe.  
Love Cam  
PS: This has nothing to do with what Zach did earlier. Stay in touch through the comm's.

I leave the note on Bex's pillow along with three pairs of comm's. I take one for myself and hook it up, pulling my hood up and over my head. I 'borrow' Bex's black backpack (seeing as though mine's purple) and stuff it with underwear, shirts, two more jeans, socks, a torch, batteries, my phone, fake passport, some wigs and fake glasses, money, a brush, hairbands, bugs and a pen.

I sling it over my shoulder and head through the hallway and am about to turn the corner when I hear voices. I can hear Bex, Macey, Liz and Zach in an empty classroom, talking. "Let's watch the video," I hear Liz say eagerly. After a couple of minutes I hear them arguing.

"Where on Earth is she going?" Macey asks, astounded.

"Oh my god, this is all my fault," Zach says, his voice muffled.

"Damn right it's your fault"! Bex screeches. "Liz, zoom in on the note. See if you can see what she wrote."

A few seconds later, Liz reads out the note to her friends. I hear Macey utter a very un-ladylike word. I hear footsteps running out of the classroom and down the hallway. I follow them to the front door as they spring out into the night sky, already dotted with stars. I creep down behind them through the gravel driveway, past manicured lawns and a large fountain to the wrought iron gates.

I wait patiently as Bex picks the lock and they run out onto the path. I sneak around them, heading for the thick cover of trees. Macey almost spots me a couple of times, but my black clothes blend into the night.

"There she is!" Liz screeches. I break out into a run, abandoning all hope of staying quiet. My hood falls down past my head, letting my wild hair loose. I hear Zach and my roommates gaining on me, and I fall into the cover of the trees. I zigzag wildy. As I disappear into the shadows, I hear Macey ordering everyone to split up. From what I can hear, I guess Macey and Liz are completely off course, but I need to watch out for Zach and Bex.

I keep running for about a minute, when I slow down to take a breath. After a couple of seconds, I hear someone coming so I run to a tall tree with low branches and start to climb. Once I've climbed about a story up, I hear Bex stop running at the base of the tree. She crosses her arms and I jump down, my feet jarring with the impact, but I take off running anyway.

It only takes a few seconds before she tackles me. We roll down the slight slope, crashing through the underbrush and into trees. At the bottom of the hill, she lands on top of me, pinning my arms down by the wrists.

"What on earth were you thinking?" she hisses at me. "Zach, over here!" she yells louder, before turning back to me. I hear Zach's footstep's echoing, and I know I don't have long. Bex and Zach vs. Cammie. It doesn't look promising. But Bex vs. Cammie… I have a chance.

I relax on the ground. Her grips loosens a little. Not much, but a little. I take the opportunity, sitting up. I elbow her in the chest and she stumbles off me. I push her onto the ground as I stand up. "I'm so sorry, Bex," I say, running off into the night. Soon I can hear her and Zach yelling after me, but I outrun them. Soon I'm lost in the cover of the night, all alone.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_1 week later_

I am huddled in some bushes by a cave. Through the past week, I've managed to talk to my roommates and boyfriend a couple of times. I haven't given them enough information to even guess where I am, only that I'm okay. I managed to tail a Circle member to this cave a couple of times, and last night I was lucky enough to glimpse Zach's mum with some other Circle members.

"Chameleon?" I hear Liz say into my comm's unit. "Chameleon, are you there?"

"I'm here, Bookworm," I reply. "Look, I've found where the Circle is hiding, and I'm going to go in and get some information."

"No!" I hear Bex yell. "Cam- Chameleon, I will kill you when you get back here for putting yourself in that much danger. _If_ you get back at all!"

"Relax, Duchess, I'm a spy. More importantly, I'm a Gallagher Girl, and I'll be fine. I'm just going in, finding Zach's mum, getting some info and getting back out. Then I'll come back home, and everything will be fine again."

"Chameleon, don't you dare go in there!" Macey yells.

"Yeah, sure thing, Peacock," I whisper. Shadows are moving at the base of the cave.

"Are you even listening to me, Chameleon? Don't you dare go in there!"

"Okay guys, I'm going in now. Wish me luck!"

"Zach!" Liz complained. "She's going in!"

I hear a scuffle and a smash, and a faint "Oopsie daisy!" from Liz.

"Gallagher Girl, please don't go in there. You don't know what my mum will do to you if you go in there. Please, Gallagher Girl…"

"Goodbye, Zach," I say, a little coldly. I think he sensed it, because pretty soon he was complaining to Bex and Macey, who were trying their hardest to convince me to turn around and go home.

Soon I whisper, "guys, shut up! Do you want me to get caught?" They all stop talking. "Thank you. Now, if I get in trouble, I'll yell the code word."

"What's the code word?" Liz asks.

"I don't know. Bex, make one up."

After a couple of silent seconds, she says into the comm's unit, "lava lamp."

"Lava lamp?" I reply dubiously.

"Yes, lava lamp," Bex repeats.

"Okay then… here I go." I take a deep breath and crawl along the ground to the entrance of the cove. I'm wearing a different pair of skinny jeans, dark denim instead of the original black ones, but I'm still wearing my black top and jumper. The comm's unit is on my head and my black hair is pulled into a messy ponytail. To anyone else, I look like a goth school girl on a mufti day… without all the make-up, of course. I even painted my nails black a couple of days before I left the school. By now they have little chips in them. The only reason why they haven't been completely chipped off is because of Dr. Fibs and Liz Sutton's new nail polish for spies. I pick up some black dirt by my feet and rub it onto the back and palms of my hands, my neck and my face. Perfect.

I sneak into the cave. It keeps splitting off in two, and I always take the right entry way. That way I won't get lost. After a while I start to hear voices. The tunnels take me to a catwalk looking over what I would guess is the main HQ. There is a slightly lifted floor made out of steel, with four sets of stairs leading out from the four compass points. In the centre is a tall column lined with security cameras, and a desk angles out from underneath the bottom row, complete with study chairs. Pens, pencils, calculators, papers, blueprints and strange electronic equipment fall over the sides of the desk.

Standing on the steel platform is Zach's mom, along with two burly men in black jeans and tight fitting black shirts. "Chameleon?" asks Liz through my ear. "Do you copy me?"

"I copy you, Bookworm," I whisper. "I've entered the cave and taken the right tunnel for every fork I've found, which is 14. Now I'm on a catwalk overlooking the main HQ, which has Zach's mum and two security guard guys. There are heaps of TV's with security camera footage, and lots of papers and blueprints. They're all for some sort of bombs or planes."

"Great," Bex says. "Now you have what you want to know, can you please get out of there and come home?"

"In a minute," I whisper. "They're leaving… If I can just sneak down, I might be able to see what's on the documents and even take some photos of the blueprints."

"Cammie, no," Macey warns. "It's too dangerous." By now all three Circle members have left and I start to creep down the nearby staircase.

From behind me I can hear footsteps, and I turn around to see Security Guard 1 behind me, blocking the exit. From the other three exits step three more security guards. They're all wearing matching outfits, and they aren't even uniforms.

"Wow, that must be, like, really awkward for you guys," I say out loud.

"What?" ask Bex, Liz and Macey at the same time.

"Not you," I hiss. "The guys surrounding me."

"Cam, you need to get out of there now," Liz says quickly.

"Really?" I ask sarcastically. "I hadn't figured that part out yet."

"You know, wearing the same outfit and all… haha… yeah… so, if you don't mind, I might just take some of these." I walk over to the desks and grab a pile of documents at random. I stuff them into my backpack. "Now, I might just, you know… umm… leave?" I walk over to a guy, and he doesn't move. "Or, you know, I could stay for tea."

The security guards close in on me and I back into the centre of the room. Soon I'm surrounded, and I hear evil laughing (yes, actually evil-laughage) from the catwalk. I look up to see Zach's mum standing there, looking down, in black trousers, a white blouse and a black business jacket.

"Dear, sweet, naïve, Cammie," she says. "How kind of you to join us." Her voice turns hard again. "Bring her to the interrogation chamber." She leaves the room and all four security guards head toward me.

"Umm… guys?" I ask my roommates. "Is it just me being paranoid, or does 'interrogation chamber' sound slightly bad to you guys too?"

"Cammie," Bex moans. "How many of them are there?"

"Just four," I say. "I can take them, right?"

I complete a perfectly placed round-house kick at Security Guard 1, but he catches it millimeters away from the side of his head, not even blinking. He pushes me away, sending me staggering into Security Guard number 2, who catches me. I jerk away, dodging his blow. I elbow Security Guard 3 and kick Security Guard 4 in the shins. I turn back to Security Guard 2 and grab him around the neck, pulling his head down to meet my knee. He collapses onto the floor. I turn around, only to face Security Guard 1 and 4. As I'm busy defending myself, Security Guard 3 sneaks up behind and holds my wrists behind my back. I use him to push off the ground and kick Security Guard's 1 and 4 in the faces. They crumple to the ground, but Security Guard 3 definitely has me. I struggle, but his hold is firm.

He drags me away screaming. "Chameleon? Cammie!" my friends yell repeatedly into the comm's unit.

"Guys, they have me," I yell back. "I'll be fine. Don't panic! I'll get-" a buzzing sound fills my comm's unit. "-away." I finish.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**Sorry it's so short guys. :) It's just because the last one was longer than the others. Please comment! If you don't know, having a great comment from a reader is possibly one of the best things in the world. If you already know that, then please brighten up my day by sending me a comment.**

The comm's unit is taken from me and so is my backpack. My hoddie is jerked roughly over my head and my hairband is taken with it, releasing my curling black hair. A blindfold is jerked over my eyes and I am spun around and around before being lead in one direction.

I feel myself being pushed into a hard chair and I can sense a bright light being pushed in my face. My ankles are strapped in place by the base of the chair, my stomach is tied to the back of the chair and my arms are tied to the armrests. My blindfold is finally jerked off and I start to blink. I'm in a black room, but the light shining in my eyes could just be disguising everything.

Zach's mother's voice fills the air. "You will tell us everything we want to know, Cammie, sweetie, or else you will pay!"

"I bet you think we'll play 20 questions, hey?" I ask viciously. "You ask anything you want and I'll answer, 'or else'?" That earns me a slap. A stinging, vicious slap from Mrs. Goode.

"Starting with information on my son," she growls.

"I'll never tell you what you want to know," I say. "It doesn't matter if it's about Zach, my friends, my teachers, my school or my father!"

"Oh, Cammie, dear," chuckles Zach's mum. "We have instruments that you could never possibly imagine, and I am just itching to test them on you. We have bottles that will make you go blind for a day, disgusting liquids that will make you need to pee but you can't, and other things that will make you feel pain beyond measure. We have whips, knives, poison and other instruments. So let me try again; tell me about my son!"

"Never," I say viciously.

Zach's mum straightened up. "Then let me go get my toys."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_6 months later_

Bex's POV

"Come on, Macey," I say. "Time for class." I look longingly at Cammie's bed. Her drawers all all in, her doona is smoothed down and everything is in place. I look up as I see Macey's hand on my shoulder.

"She's okay," Macey assures me. "This is Cammie we're talking about. She's snuck out of school just to see a cute guy, goes to a school for spies… she can take care of herself."

"Macey… do you really believe what you're saying?" I ask.

"No," she whispers back. "But I hope it's true anyways."

We pick up our textbooks and head down for science with Dr. Fibs, where Liz is probably already waiting. Liz has changed since Cammie's disappeared. She doesn't eat much, and only comes to her bed at midnight. But then again, we've all changed.

During fifth period, Macey, Liz, Zach and I get called to the principal's office. It's very awkward, because the principal is Cammie's mum. When we arrive, packets of chips, popcorn and chocolate wrappers litter the ground, along with foam cups that used to hold hot chocolate and coffee.

The headmistress is sitting on a red moth-eaten couch in three quarter length denim pants and a long red sweater. Tissues are littered around her and her eyes and nose are red.

"Girls, Zach, please take a seat." We all sit nervously on the end of our seats. "We received a call from Zach's mother today," she begins slowly. Beside me, Zach stiffens. "She had a certain video that she, ah, wanted us to see."

"What was it?" asked Liz.

"Girls, Zach, you see… Mrs. Goode has Cammie, and she sent us a video of her, ah, hurting her. We believe she is trying to trade Cammie for information. However, the FBI, M16 and CSI do not wish to make the trade, and are therefore allowing Mrs. Goode to keep Cammie."

"What?" we all yell out. We all start talking at once, but we silence when Cammie's mum lifts a hand. "However, in the video, which I will not show you, Cammie made eye contact with the camera. In the few seconds she did, she managed to shake her head, and give a flicker of a wink. We therefore have reason to believe that she has something planned."

"But how long will that take?" I ask bitterly. "Her last plan didn't turn out too good, did it?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Cammie's POV

My eyes flicker open. The light is gone, and the cleaner has left a bottle of 'Mr. Sheen; Multi-Surface Polish' on the table beside me. Suddenly, I remember something Liz put into my watch. I shuffle my wrist just a little, until it hits the bottle of polish. The clock face sinks backwards and a spinning blade rises out of the glass. I slide my wrist out of the chain, watching as it slices the metal. Once my left arm is free, I free my right arm, my stomach and my legs.

I stand up hurriedly, but collapse from the pain racking my whole body. I look down. My arms are covered in cuts, bruises and whip lashes, as are my legs. My shirt and jeans are shredded into ribbons, but shoes look okay. Despite myself, I smile. Bex bought those boots for me.

I spend the next ten minutes teaching myself to walk again. Once I figure it out, I slip out of the room and down some corridors. When a blinking red light starts flashing and a siren starts blaring, I break into a jog. Pain courses up my limbs, but I ignore it and continue. A couple of times a security guard catches onto my tail, but I lose them through the twisting labyrinth.

After a good two hours, I can see the sun shining through the exit. As I near the cave entry, I realise it has been blocked by iron gates. I haven't been fed well at all, a bowl of porridge (or something I'm telling myself is porridge because I honestly have no idea what it is) and a glass of water a day, so I slip through the bars easily. Guess they didn't see that one coming!

I trudge through the green grass, up a hill, towards a building where I hope to seek shelter, food and water. As I near it, I realise that it's actually a church; the kind you see in movies, where nuns live. I bang on the door and am greeted by a young woman with blonde hair, who ushers me into a spare bedroom. The nuns are all really sweet and pretty soon I've washed my hair, scrubbed away all the dirt and dried blood and gotten rid of the dirty bandages. All my cuts look really bad, and feel even worse, but there aren't any bandages or ointment, so I just have to leave them be.

I lost my spare clothes, so the nuns lend me a simple white dress with a blue ribbon tied around the middle. I keep my shoes. I comb out my hair and brush it out. They lend me a phone and I call the Academy. My mum answers.

"Good morning, this is the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, and you are talking to the headmistress, Ms. Morgan. How may I help you today?" She sounds tired and worn out.

"Mum?" I croak.

"Cammie!" she shouts into the phone. Soon I hear her breaking down into sobs and my roommates and boyfriend in the background yelling and screaming.

The nun gently takes the phone off me, and talks to my mother, arranging where I should be picked up. Eventually they agreed to pick me up in a helicopter in the valley on the other side of the town.

The nuns hide me in the boot and fill the rest of the old buggie up with five other nuns. They try to drive slowly, but by the time we are in the middle of town, some of my cuts have been reopened. They open the boot door to let me get some fresh air and I break into a fit of coughs. I notice an alleyway beside the car, and by the dumpster is-

"My backpack!" I yell. I ran over and open the black bag up. Sure enough, inside were my clothes, passport, brush and everything else. I notice that my hoodie is also in the area. I go into a nearby bathroom and change out of the white dress and into fresh jeans, a white t-shirt and pulled my hoodie on over top.

When I came out, the nuns usher me into the car, where they drive me to the valley. They stop at one end, while the helicopter is on the other. I see my mother, Mr. Solomon and some other spy-guys by the helicopter. I slowly walk over to greet them, and then I notice they were shouting angrily and waving their hands in the arm. I stop entirely and notice a group of black-clad people running towards me. There are only five, but right now it was five-specially-trained-fighters vs. a-hurt-unstable-Cammie. I don't like my chances. My moves are slow and blurry, and all my training leaves my head. I receive a blow to the head and many punches in the face and stomach.

Soon I am being slung over someone's shoulder. I feel a piercing sensation in my upper arm, and the world dissolves before me.

When I wake up again, I am on the helicopter. Mr. Solomon is on one side of me and my mother is on the other. The other spy-guys are nowhere to be seen. I am lying on a stretcher and my mother is clutching my hand and whispering urgently to Mr. Solomon. I catch the words 'Circle', 'torture' and 'Cammie' before she notices I am awake and stops talking.

"Hey, sweetie, how are you feeling?" she asks me. I try to sit up by the world starts spinning and my mum gently pushes me back down.

"What happened?" I ask.

"Some of the Circle members attacked just as you were escaping," Mr. Solomon says.

"My backpack!" I say hastily, pushing myself up. Pain racks through me, and some of my blood drips slowly down my arm. I gasp. When I see it in a corner, I relax.

"Honey, what's so special in the backpack?" my mum asks.

"I collected some of their information," I say. "I stored it in the backpack."

"That's my girl," Mr. Solomon says, looking at me proudly. I gave a meak smile and he pats me on the shoulder. I give a gasp of pain. "Sorry," he says.

A few minutes later, after a good mother-daughter-teacher bonding experience that was mostly awkward silences broken by my coughing, we land in the manicured lawns of the Gallagher Academy. As soon as the helicopter doors open, I swing my legs down off the stretcher. My mum and Mr. Solomon allow me to put my arms around their shoulders as I limp down off the helicopter.

"Mum," I say, "where are my friends?" The manicured lawns are completely empty, avoid from any previous or current Gallagher Girls, aside from myself and my mum, of course. That's until Professor Buckingham and Aunt Abby come tearing out of the double doors and screech to a stop in front of us, panting like they're running from an apocalypse.

"Hey, squirt," Aunt Abby says, ruffling my hair. It doesn't do much, seeing as though it's already knotted and a bird's nest. Then she hugs me, and I unsling my arms from my mum and Cove Ops teacher to hug her back.

"I missed you, Aunt Abby," I whisper.

"I missed you too, Cam," she whispers back. When she finally stopped, I'm surprised to find my history teacher hugging me. I give her an awkward pat on the back and she backs off, wiping her eyes.

"Your friends are in their classes," my mum says, answering my previous question. "We decided they might not concentrate hard enough if they knew you were coming back in… this condition."

"What condition?" I ask. Then I look down. One leg might be broken, as might be some ribs, and every part of my body has been whipped, burnt or sliced. "Oh," I say, answering my own question.

We walk up the front steps, and into the main foyer. I look around. There is the entry way to one of the secret passageways I found in year 7, and there's the Gillian Gallagher family tree. I unwrap my arms from my teacher and mum with an "I can find my own way back, thank you." I leave them talking with Aunt Abby and Professor Buckingham as I limp up the staircase, careful to avoid putting pressure on my leg.

When I finally reach the top level, students are already coming out of class, so I ignore the stares and whispers and walk up to our room. Sure enough, there are my three best friends, and my boyfriend. Right now I don't even care that he's the son of the woman who tortured me, or that he left me when I needed him. I'm just so glad to finally see him again.

I stop in the doorway as I hear a "Cam doesn't need to know," from Macey. Sure enough, she and Zach are hugging on the floor, their faces turned away from me.

If I hadn't had been tortured for months, then I probably would have run away and hidden in a secret passageway until dinner. But I had, and I had hidden my mask of pain from an ancient evil terrorist organization that wants answers from me. So, being this new Cammie, I opened the door with a squeak.

"Cammie doesn't need to know what?" I ask. My face is avoid of all emotions, even though the pain in my leg is actually really hurting right now.

"Cam!" everyone cries. Liz, surprisingly, is the first one to reach me, and she jumps on me, making me stumble backwards. I brace my arm against the wall, and I'm glad that my arms and legs are covered by my jeans and jumper, even if it is getting really hot. I mean, it's Autumn. Who would have known it was this hot in Autumn?

Bex reaches me next, and jumps onto me too. This time, surprisingly, I don't stumble back, but the pain in my leg increases. Macey and Zach stay where they are. They slowly get up and come over to me. Zach reaches to push some hair behind my ear. I jerk my head back from him.

"Zach, what were you and Macey talking about?" This time I can't help myself, my eyes do brim up with tears.

"Cam, it isn't what you think it is," Macey explains. "Zach started- Zach, can I tell her?"

Zach nods solemnly. "I guess it's better than her thinking the alternative," he says.

"Zach started crying," Macey continues on. "And you know Zach, he never cries. He didn't want you to find out. He thought about you being so brave while you were being tortured, and then he was here crying. He didn't want you to think of him as weak. I was just comforting him."

I wipe my tears away. "Oh my gosh, Macey, Zach, I am so, so sorry! I jumped to conclusions when I shouldn't have, and I am really, really sorry. Can you please forgive me? Oh my goodness, please believe me when I say-"

I never did get to tell them what I say because Liz and Bex let go of me, and Zach picked my head up and kissed me. Yes, on the mouth. For 34 seconds. His hands got tangled up in my hair, and my arms wrapped around his neck. For the first time, I was able to ignore my leg, my ribs and every single sore part on my body and relax in his grip.

He opened his mouth against mine and we break apart, still holding each other. "Gallagher Girl," he whispered against my mouth. "I will always forgive you, no matter what. I love you, and I will never let you go again."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**This one is extra-long because of the past two short ones. :) Please enjoy and comment!**

_Later that night_

I settle into bed, as does Liz, and we all chat, with Zach, Macey and Bex all on the floor. They are all chatting, and I am slowly drifting off into a semi-conscious state. "So, where were you, Cammie? Was Zach's mum there?"

I jump at the sound of her name, my eyes travelling all around the room. "Zach's mum? Where? Where is she? Oh my god…" I jump out of bed (with surprisingly good landing for someone who can barely walk) and run to the door. I feel a hand on my shoulder, and turn around to see the concerned faces of my roommates and boyfriend.

"It's okay, Cammie," Macey assures me. "She's not here. Bex was just wondering if you were with Zach's mum the whole time." At the sound of her name, my breathing increased and I tense up. Soon my friends were making soothing sounds while Bex and Zach were talking a ways away.

"Oh my god!" Liz screames. "Cammie, you're- you're bleeding!"

I look down at my blue pyjama long-sleeve, which now has a spreading pool of blood on the front. I murmur an excuse about going to the bathroom and lock myself in the room, using the same method as last time to make sure nobody gets in.

I tug the shirt over my head and let it soak in the sink. I grab another top (this time a green long sleeve from a cabinet and place it on the countertop. I pick up a yellow washer and let it soak in hot water. I can hear my friends calling me from outside. I pluck the washer from the water and hold it against my stomach. I look down at the slash mark, which has opened up when I ran for the door.

It was from recently. Zach's mum had gotten really angry about the whole not-telling-her-anything-for-six-months thing, so she brought out her knife and slashed me with it. I spent the next day in some sort of prison infirmary, having stitches and drinking disgusting medicine. The next day I was back in the chair with chains on.

I soak up all the blood and wring out the washer. I let it dry in my sink (there are 4) and pull on the tank top so that it covers my wound. When I come back out I notice that Zach has left and the others are pretending to be asleep.

I sigh. "I know you're pretending to be asleep, which means I get a head start on you guys." I leave the room and, sure enough, I can hear slipper covered feet following after me. After leaving the dormitory I walk down a corridor, smiling at the sound of my three best friends following me. I pull a book out of a bookcase and entered one of my favourite secret passageways.

I push through the cobwebs until I reach the infirmary. The nurse is asleep, so I nick some bandages and pills and take a different route back to our room. When I get back, Bex, Liz and Macey aren't there and I am positive I wasn't being followed, so I wrap some of the gauze around my stomach and stuff the rest into my bottom drawer, along with the ten different bottles of pills. I take a couple now and leave the rest.

By the time my roommates come back up, I'm already sound asleep.

In the morning I check my alarm clock. I sit up quickly as I check the time. 5:00am. I'm still tired, by I swing my legs out of bed silently. I pad down to the infirmary and take back up a pile of bandages and pain killers. When I come back up, everyone is still asleep so I shove them into my drawer.

Then I set about to tidy the place up. My neatly pressed uniforms thrown into my drawers are hung up in my closet, as are any dresses I might own. I unpack my drawers full of clothes and repack them, according to piece of clothing and colour.

I line all my shoes up in a row at the base of my bed, and I organize my shampoo, conditioner, soap and scented body wash alphabetically in the bathroom. I pack my hairdryer, straitening iron and curling iron neatly in my drawer. I fold up my towels into a small bundle, and I make my bed with a small hospital upturned corner.

I pack up my reading books and arrange them alphabetically by the author's last name on my bookshelf, and arrange my subject books and textbooks alphabetically. When I'm satisfied that everything is packed away neatly, I change from my winter pyjamas to my school uniform, but instead of socks I wear stockings, and I also put on the school jumper to cover my arms. I pull my hair up into a neat ponytail and sit on the edge of the bed until everyone else wakes up at 6:00 am.

The girls look around, stunned, at my area of the room. They don't say anything, though, they just get ready. It takes Macey an hour to get ready, because she needs to apply her makeup and do her hair. But we eventually go down for breakfast. I sit next to Zach, with Bex on the other side. I notice that Grant and Jonas are still here too – they must have extended the stay.

I look at the bowls of cereal and plates holding bacon on the table in front of me. "Porridge?" Bex offers.

I gasp, and my eyes go wide. I stumble off my seat, looking at the porridge. It looks exactly like what I was fed every day during my time with Cassandra Goode. Bex puts it down. "Cam?" she asks. "Are you okay?"

I look from the bowl of porridge to Bex's face. Then I run. I know, I know… I'm a spy, why am I scared of a bowl of porridge?

A list of why spies could be scared of porridge  
A list by Cameron Ann Morgan

There could be a bomb hidden in it

It could be toxic

It could remind you of a time with a monkey, a pickup truck and bowl of porridge in Greece

There could be a tracking device in it

M16 could have accidentally given you the wrong bowl

Your friend could have knocked a bottle of something dangerous in it

Your science teacher may have been within 10 metres of it

This is a spy school full of teenage girls – do I really need to elaborate?

There could be some kind of deadly creature hidden at the bottom

It could remind you of the time you were tortured and that was the only food you saw

In my case, it was then 10th option, although I can relate to option 3, 6, 7 and 8. After hiding in a secret tunnel for a while, I decided I better go to class. I headed off to Madame Dabney's class (hey, just because I've been on the run and tortured for the past 6 months doesn't mean I haven't memorized my timetable).

I knocked on the door, not forgetting my manners. "Sorry I'm late, Madame," I say.

"Cameron, I wasn't aware you were attending this class," she replies.

"Yes, sorry. I just got a bit distracted. But I'm here now."

"Yes, yes… Please, take a seat." She gestures to a high backed dining chair with armrests. There is no cushion on it, and it looks like the one in the interrogation room. I gasp and my eyes dart around quickly.

The rest of the class is looking at me, so I limp over to the chair and hesitantly sit on the edge of the seat. Without noticing, my arms tense on the armrests and my ankles line up with the chair legs.

"What's the matter, Gallagher Girl?" a teasing voice asks behind me.

I squeal and jump into the air, gasping for breath and spinning around to see Zach. His smirk has gone and he's staring at me, confused.

"Cam, are you okay?" My whole body is shaking, and my mind flashes back to the times in that black room. The knives that slit open my arms and legs, and the whips that cut open my skin, causing blood to drip down by limbs.

Zach takes a step toward me with his hand out, but I turn and run away. My whole body shakes with pain, and I feel like I'm about to collapse. I don't look back, but I can feel tears sliding down my cheeks. What has she done to me?

I wipe the tears away and continue through the silent corridors. Along the way I meet Aunt Abby talking to Mr. Solomon. I push past them and they turn around, startled.

"Cammie!" I hear them calling me. "Cam, come back!" I can feel myself slowing down, and I know they'll catch me. All I want is to be alone. As I turn a corner, a push a tapestry aside and push the slightly darker stone block in. The whole wall slides away. I duck into the shadows as it closes again, the tapestry fluttering back into place.

Outside I can hear them stopping short and calling my name. They ask each other if they know of any secret passageways in the area, but neither of them do.

"Abby, this is Cammie," says Mr. Solomon. "I don't care if she's been held prisoner and tortured for six months, this is _Cammie_. Do you really think we're going to find her?"

How wrong they are. This is new Cammie; who can't fight off four security guards, who can't stand up to Zach's mum, who can't even hear her boyfriend walking up to her. What kind of spy have I become?

Bex's POV

I sigh as Cammie run's away. Whatever Mrs. Goode did to her, it must be bad if she can't handle it anymore. Liz, Macey, Zach and I ask Madame Dabney if we can go after her, but she says no.

At the end of the lesson we all come over to the chair Cammie was at. Liz picks up her bag. "She might want this," she explains. "Wow, this is heavy. What did she pack?"

Madame Dabney and the rest of our class have already left. "Let me see," Zach says. He takes the bag off Liz and opens it up. A roll of gauze and a couple of pain killer bottles are inside. We all gasp, looking at each other. Then we take off, ready to go find Cammie.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Cammie's POV

It's getting late. A couple of times I hear my mum, Aunt Abby, Mr. Solomon, Zach, Bex, Liz and Macey walking by, calling out for me. Soon it becomes silent. I guess they've given up. I know the feeling. By the end of the time I was with Mrs. Goode, I had given up fighting. I didn't say anything, just took the pain silently.

I creep out of my secret passageway and sneak down to the main foyer. Branching off are the eating area, where I can see my friends eating. They don't look particularly happy; worried, actually.

I sneak over to the family tree of Gillian Gallagher, and do the usual procedure to open the secret passageway. I creep into town. When I arrive I purposely take the route that will lead me to the Abrams' pharmacy. When I arrive, I see Josh working behind the counter, flicking through a magazine. When he looks up, he sees me and smiles.

He opens the door with the bell on it and jumps down the stairs to meet me. "Cammie- whoa, what happened?"

"Oh, nothing, I just… at my grandparents' farm I got into a fight with the pigs." He laughs.

"So, how are you? I haven't really seen you around lately. I've seen your friends, though."

"Yeah," I say. "I was just studying heaps in the library. You know, physics and all that."

"I know the feeling," he says. "Anyway, I have to go. I'm on a shift and it doesn't end until 10:00 tonight. See you around? You know, now that you're all finished with your studying and all."

"Maybe. Bye Josh. Tell DeeDee I said hi!"

"Sure will! See you around, Cammie," he says, walking back through the pharmacy.

I head off, back in the direction of the Gallagher Academy. Along the way, I receive many Gallagher Glares, which I ignore. That is, until I'm on the outskirts of town, and I meet up with Dillon's group, who obviously don't recognise me.

"Well well… If it isn't a Gallagher Girl," he says.

"Don't you dare call me that. Only one person calls me that, and it's not you!" I'm startled at the fury in my own words.

"Or what?" he calls mockingly. His friends walk around to surround me.

I laugh. I try to sound tougher than I actually am, because right now, Liz's little sister could beat me in a fight. "I wouldn't go there, Dillon."

"Ooh, you know my name. Spooky!" He and his friends surround me. One on my left raises a fist and brings it smashing down towards me. I dodge it and complete an almost-perfect round house kick aimed at his face. I make a collision and he goes down, clutching his bloody nose.

"Anybody else want to test me?" I say, laughing.

His friends all raise their hands to attack me. I dodge most of them, but Dillon's hits me in the jaw and I go stumbling to the ground. I roll over and he raises his foot to step on my face. I twist out from underneath his sneaker and grab his ankle, pulling it out from underneath him. I feint doing another round house kick, and instead aim at a guy's shin. Then I wrap my arms around someone's neck and pull their face down to collide with my knee.

Another guy aims to tackle me, and as I dodge him, Dillon grabs me from behind. I twist and squirm, but eventually I stop moving. His friends (all with bloody noses and sore legs) stand up laughing.

"What should we do with her?" they ask him. I look down and see my jumper is now flecked with blood. My blood, from my stomach wound. My stockings are wet and sticky too.

Suddenly, they all drop and Dillon is jerked away from behind me. Someone's hand clamps down on my shoulder and I swing my leg up and around, colliding with someone's cheek.

"Jeez, Cam, what was that for?" I hear a muffled voice say. From behind Macey McHenry appear the faces of Liz and Bex.

I look down at me blood coated stockings and jumper and turn and run. I don't know what from. All I know is that I know how to run, and it's all I can do. Ever since Mrs. Goode had me-

I stumble and fall, collapsing onto the dusty ground littered with pebbles. Just as I'm about to fall flat on my face, someone's strong arms lift me up and hold me. I struggle but then I go limp and burst into tears. My friends catch up with me and start stroking my back and hair as Zach squeezes me closer to him.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

_Midnight_

_It's dark. I'm walking through a forest. The stars are shining above me and the moon is full in the sky. A wolf is howling in the distance. Suddenly, I am surrounded on all sides by black-clad figures, and Zach's mum steps out of the dark, grinning evilly, a knife in hand._

"_No!" I yell. "Please, no! Help me, somebody, please, help me! Zach? Bex? Help me, Liz! Where are you Macey, please! Please, no- I won't-"_

I wake up screaming, covered in sweat and tangled in my doona and sheets. I'm gasping for breath and my wild hair is stuck to the nape of my neck and forehead. My friends are looking down on me anxiously. I notice I'm shivering and crying. I wipe my tears away and draw the doona closer around me as I sit up, still panting.

"Cam, are you okay?" Liz asks tentatively. At this, I burst into tears. Zach pulls me closer towards him and I hug him tight. He holds me like this until I fall asleep again.

_In the morning_

I wake up really early again, and grab my stockings, jumper, skirt and blouse from my closet. I also carry a few bottles of pills and some fresh gauze. I dump them all on the counter and tug my shirt over my head, and pull my pants off. I examine my body in the mirror. I look absolutely horrible. I unwind the bloody bandage on my stomach and scrunch it up, chucking it in the bin. I apply a new bandage and pull on my uniform

Just as I'm standing there, without my jumper or stockings on, Macey walks in with a bunch of makeup and hair products. She gasps as she sees me and quickly shuts the door.

"Cammie," she whispers, setting her stuff down on the counter. "Oh my god, are you alright?" I feel tears welling up in my eyes and Macey gives me a big bear hug. I pour my heart out to her. About how it hurts, how I suck at being a spy and how all I can do is run. At the end, she's crying too.

"Please don't tell Bex and Liz," I beg her. "I don't want them to worry about me." It takes a while, but she agrees not to tell Bex or Liz.

Bex and Liz stop talking when I enter the room. I smile at them as I slip my pill bottles into my cupboard. I carefully lock the door and slip the key between a loose floorboard. I'm pretty sure they don't see me.

I'm just straightening up when Zach comes into the room. He grins at me, but then his face widens with horror as he looks around at my neatly placed shoes and books. He walks over to Bex, Liz and Macey and starts to talk. I stand around awkwardly, trying to pretend that nothing unusual and kind of weird is happening around me.

Bex' POV

"When did she do this?" Zach asks angrily.

"Do what?" I ask.

"Clean up everything and make everything so… so… neat!"

"She's done it in the bathroom too," Macey points out. "I walked in on her earlier, when she was… changing a bandage. I promised not to tell you and Liz, but I never promised not to tell Zach."

She leant over and whispered something in his ear. His eyes grew wide. "What?!" he finally spat. "You mean… she's that hurt?" He looked stunned as Macey nodded, and he recounted to Liz and I.

"What's up with you and Cam being so neat?" I question him. "I mean, you Blackthorne boys are…"

I trail off as the realization dawns on me. "Exactly," he says. "We've been punished to automatically be this neat. And when I saw punished, I just mean scrubbing floors and running drills at 5.00am in the morning. So imagine what Cam's been through to get marks like that… how early did she wake up?"

"I saw her wake up at 5.00am, but she headed in the same direction as the bathroom, so I just ignored her and went back to sleep," I say.

Zach groans. "Which means that she really has been hurt by my _mother_." He spits the last word out like a curse. And when anyone is talking about Cassandra Goode, maybe it is.

Cammie's POV

I grab my books and sling them into my messenger bag. I take a roll of gauze and some pills and chuck them on top. I slip out of the room and head down to class. I head down to Sub Level 1 and pretty soon my friends follow me. We take a seat at a five seater at the front of the room. I sit beside Zach and Bex, with Macey opposite me and Liz diagonal to me.

"Good morning class," Mr. Solomon says cheerfully as he walks into the room. I keep my head down, but I can feel his eyes looking at me. "Ms. Morgan, it's an awfully hot day today. Wouldn't you like to take your jumper off?"

My eyes go wide and my breathing increases. Macey, seeing my anxiousness, replies for me. "That's okay, Mr. Solomon. Cam has a cold, and the jumper makes her feel more comfortable." I nod, agreeing with Macey.

"Alright then," he says. He jots something down on a piece of paper. "Now, let's learn to tell what's wrong with a scene just by getting a glimpse of it." He pulls down the projector and flashes up a scene of a carpack for a few seconds. "Ms. McHenry?" he asks.

"The number plate on the fourth car from the left," she says automatically.

"What's wrong with it?" he asks.

"It's an Australian number plate, when the rest are all from California."

"Correct." The next image is that of a little girl's birthday party. He asks everyone in the room, when finally it comes to me. It's an image of a castle in the middle of the day. "Ms. Morgan?"

I hear snickers from around the room. There must be an obvious answer. I squint closer at the scene. "I don't- I'm not- I'm sorry, Mr. Solomon, but I can't see what's wrong with it." He jots something down on the piece of paper. "Ms. Sutton?"

"It's the middle of the day and the lights are on," she says. I bury my head in my hands. The class goes on and on, me getting everything wrong and everyone else getting everything right. I feel like screaming and crying. Instead, I head straight to science, losing my friends in the crowd.

Along the way, I bump into someone and get pushed into an abandoned classroom. "Hey," I say. "Watch where you're going!"

The lights flick on, revealing-


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"Dan," I growl. "What do you want?"

"Only you," he says. He forces me back into the far corner, where I'm trapped by tables and him. He puts his hands on my waist and I squirm around, but I can't get away. He leans down, kissing my neck. I swear and struggle, but it's all in vain. One of his hands leaves my waist and travels up my thigh. I aim a kick at him and manage to get away, but only briefly.

As the door opens and my three best friends and boyfriend enter the room, he twirls me back towards him, drawing me near. I struggle to get away as my friends near me, but soon I feel a cold, sharp object being pressed into my throat.

They all freeze. "Dan," Zach says slowly. "You don't want to do this. Please, put the knife away and let Cammie go."

"I'm not the fool you take me for, Zachary Goode," Dan says. I can feel the blade pressing harshly down on my skin, drawing a few drops of blood. "You all played right into my trap… I started talking about helping Cammie make you jealous when I knew you were around. I made sure you were in the area when I started flirting with Cammie. I knew you would leave and Bex would save her. I counted on her having some alone time to ponder on the Circle. I also counted on her tailing a 'lazy' Circle member. That was my dad, who purposefully lead her right to the Circle's HQ. They've moved now, someone in Europe, possibly. What I didn't count on was the Circle being so lazy as to let her escape." He tightens his hold on me, making the knife cut deeper into my skin.

"And now I have precious little Cameron Morgan, and you can do nothing to stop me."

"Oh yeah?" Bex challenges, taking a step toward Dan. Macey pulls her back as the knife cuts deeper into my skin.

"Mrs. Goode has created some even more torturous devices to use on little Cammie, and I have a feeling this time she'll break. Now, you will all do exactly as I say, or I will draw this knife on her." I can feel his jaw rising into a grin behind me. "Excellent. Now, go fetch Mr. Solomon. And do not even think of telling him why or getting reinforcements. I don't care what happens to me, but I'm sure you do care what happens to your friend."

A few minutes later, Liz comes back into the room with Mr. Solomon. "Liz, what on earth is this for?" he says as he is dragged through the doorway. Once he sees Dan and I, he freezes.

"Joseph Solomon," Dan drags out. "I believe you are familiar with Cameron Morgan?"

"Leave Cammie alone, Dan. You don't want to do this." He takes a step toward Dan, and I gasp as I feel the blade puncture my skin. Mr. Solomon stops where he is.

"Oh, believe me, Joe, I think I do," Dan says. He reaches behind his back and pulls another knife out, this time aimed at my side. "Now, Joe, I will be taking Cammie straight back with me to the Circle's HQ. Like I said, I think this time she'll break and tell us all we need to know. But I am willing to promise you that she will not die if you, Joseph Solomon, willingly come with me."

I stiffen. "Mr. Solomon, please, don't-" Dan cut me off with a swift cut on my side. I gasp, but don't scream out. Dan holds out a set of handcuffs and Mr. Solomon turns around, his wrists crossed behind. As Dan is distracted with Mr. Solomon, Liz reaches into her backpack and pulls out a can that looks like hairspray. She shakes it and twists the cap, throwing it at us. It stops at my feet.

"What the-?" Dan starts, but is cut off as the bottle explodes, sending little pieces of metal in every direction. I see Joe Solomon escape from the yellow gas billowing out from the can, but Dan still has a firm hold on me, knives pressing into my skin. We start coughing and fall to our knees.

Dan whispers in my ear "if I'm going down, you're coming with me!" The next minute, I see a hand rising up through the gas, and I twist, narrowly escaping from being stabbed by the blade. All of a sudden Zach is there, dragging me from the knock-out gas as Dan collapses in a twitching heap.

My friends all jump on me, hugging me tightly. Zach kisses me on the lips. Then Mr. Solomon is there, pulling them off me. "Cammie!" he yells. "You're bleeding!"

I look down at my stomach. "That's okay, sir. It opens up from time to time."

"No, I mean your leg. Dan stabbed you!"

"That's crazy, Mr. Solomon. I would've felt-" I stop short as I look down. My skirt has been sliced open, and so has my stockings. And dripping from my thigh is my blood, thick, heavy and ruby red. I feel the world spin around me, even as my Cove Ops teacher and best friends are telling me what to do.

I barely feel the wind rushing past my head as I fall to the ground, Zach catching me and lifting me up in his arms. I'm aware of him running to the hospital with my roommates and teacher, and lying in a bed, feeling dizzy.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**It is about to get romantic… very! Don't worry, it's only kissing and hugging and telling each other how they feel. It doesn't get any worse than kissing. I promise. :) I would never write about something like that! :)**

_1 week later_

I can feel the sun shining against my closed eyelids. My left leg has shooting pains running up and down it. I open my eyes with a little gasp. Beside me, Zach is holding my hand, asleep. I squirm out of the covers and sit up, still hand in hand with Zach. I lift the edge of my skirt up, and I can see a thick white bandage covering my thigh. Most of my other major wounds have been rebound and some even stitched up again.

I gasp as I realise what this means. It means that, for the first time since I got back, someone has seen me without something covering my legs. I turn to look at Zach, who is staring into my eyes. I hastily pull the cover back up over my legs. "Zach, did you-?" I start.

"Cammie," he whispers, pulling me towards him. His lips meet mine and his fingers get tangled in my hair. I'm shocked. He didn't call me Gallagher Girl, he called me Cammie. Then I allow myself to get lost in the moment. I ignore the pain racking through my whole body and only feel the love I feel for this boy, right in front of me.

All too soon, he breaks away. "Cammie," he whispers again. "Oh my god, we thought you were going to die!"

"What?" I ask. "Why would you think that?"

"Cammie, you've been in a coma for the last week."

Bex's POV

I finish packing up from Mr. Smith's COW class. I fall into step with Macey and Liz. Zach has ditched just about all his classes, staying at Cammie's bed night and day, just holding her hand, not moving. He barely ate anything. I think of how he must feel. How we all must feel. Cammie ran off thinking she was protecting us. She was missing for 6 months. She came back, acting slightly crazy; she won't ever allow her arms or legs to see daylight. She was attacked by Dan. She has been in a coma with life support for a week. It was enough to make any best friend and boyfriend crazy with grief.

As we exit the classroom, silent, we see Zach leaning against the door frame with Headmistress Morgan, Cammie's Aunt Abby and Mr. Solomon. They were all talking at the same time, asking Zach what on earth had dragged them from their classes to come wait for his friends come out from their COW class.

"Zach?" Macey asks. "What's wrong?"

"I think you should come see this," he says. He leads the way, refusing to answer any questions. As we near the hospital ward, Liz's face goes pale and I can tell everyone is freaking out.

He slowly pushes the door open, to show Cammie lying in bed. The cords and IV's have been pulled out of her arms and she is sitting up, smiling. "Cammie!" we all yell. Well actually, Liz, Macey and I yell. Headmistress Morgan, Cam's Aunt Abby and Mr. Solomon just get this really big, goofy grin and hurry to her side.

"Hey guys," she croaks. "Umm… would any of you like to explain how I got to be in a coma?"

Zach offers and starts explaining. "Cammie, when you got stabbed by the jerk, Dan, I carried you up here and the nurse sewed your leg back up. Then you sort of… stopped breathing and we couldn't feel your pulse. Luckily, we managed to get you hooked up to the life support system, and you've been in a coma for the past week."

Once Zach finished explaining to Cammie, the rest of us left, leaving those two alone.

Cammie's POV

I lower my head as my friends, teacher, aunt and mum leave, until Zach sits down beside me, lifting my chin with his finger.

"So, did you see…" I don't have to finish. He knows what I mean; my legs. And if he saw my legs, then he probably lifted my jumper sleeves to see my arms, and maybe even the big cut on my stomach.

He nods, pursing his lips. "Then, you must have stayed to break up with me."

Whatever he was expecting, it was obviously not this. "What?" he manages to gasp.

I lower my eyes again. "Because, you know… I look hideous! A normal girl shouldn't look like this. A normal girl shouldn't have scars because a normal girl isn't hunted down and tortured by an ancient evil terrorist organization! Every time you see me now, you'll be reminded of _her_. You'll be reminded of your mother." I feel a tear sliding down my cheek and I reach up to brush it away. "If we... went on a date, I wouldn't be able to wear a dress, or a skirt, or shorts. I wouldn't be able to look like a girl. You deserve better than that. You deserve someone who isn't afraid of showing off her skin. You deserve someone beautiful."

"Cammie," Zach whispers. "How could you even think that? To me, those scars aren't hideous. To me, those scars are beautiful. They show how you're willing to risk yourself to save those you love. They show your bravery. And I don't care who you remind me of, because all I'll ever see is you. Oh, and by the way, you. are. beautiful."

I look up to finally meet his eye, and once again I see his face come slanting across mine, his lips crashing against mine, and my body melting into his as he pulls me closer to him. He gasps against my mouth before closing his lips to mine again. His arms cross against my back as he tries to push us closer together, even though we can't possibly get any closer to each other. I wrap my arms around his neck and we freeze like this. I can't say how long it is until we break away, but it seems like not long enough.

"Oh my god, Cammie," he says. I unwind my arms from his neck and curl into his chest, where his hands hold me close. I can feel every muscle underneath his shirt. He absently strokes my hair. "I thought I had lost you. Those 6 months were the hardest of my life, because I knew that somewhere she was either hurting you, or you were on the run, being forced to live as a criminal. I knew that you were hurting, and that made me hurt."

"I'm sorry," I whisper.

He laughs. "You have a knack for finding trouble, don't you?" he asks. I can feel him smiling. He sighs. "And then this past week was just as hard. I thought not knowing where you were or what you were feeling was hard. This is harder. I could see you, hear you breathing, feel your hand in mine. I kept talking to you, making you eat and drink. I read to you, I kissed you and I did everything I could to make you wake up, but it was never enough." He lifts my head and holds it in both of his warm hands. "I love you, Cammie. Please, please, please don't ever scare me like that again." I open my mouth to reply, but there he is again, kissing me like it's the end of the world. This one doesn't last as long as before, but it's just as special.

As we kiss, his knee accidentally knocks into my stomach and I gasp, doubling over in pain. "Cammie?" he asks. "Cammie!" he yells louder.

As the pain recedes, I slowly sit up. He sighs, cuddling me again. "I am so, so sorry. You know I would never do anything to purposefully hurt you, right?"

"I know," I respond. "It wasn't you that hurt me, it was-" I break off, biting my lip.

He tenses up. "My mother. I am going to kill her! In fact, I think I'll go right now." He pulls away from me.

"Zach? Zach, no, please!" I beg him.

"Cammie, I need to," he whispers. He leans down and kisses me. I try to draw him closer, but he breaks away.

"Zach!" I cry out, tears streaming down my cheeks. "You said how hard it was for you, not knowing where I was, if I was being tortured or even alive. Do you want to make me go through that?"

He pauses. "I'm sorry, Cammie. I really am. I don't want to hurt you like this, but I need to have my revenge. She can't hurt the people I love and get away with it." He walks out the two tall grand wooden doors. He opens one back up slightly. "Oh, and I'm locking the door so you can't follow me. I don't want you getting hurt any more than you have to."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

"Zach, no!" He leaves and I bury my head in the pillow. I try to stand and find that I can, but it hurts. I nick a few bandages and pain killer bottles and swallow a few pills. Now I walk (actually, I hobble) over to the door and take my bobby pin out. In seven seconds flat I have the door swinging open. I know he'll have to go prepare quickly, so I take some secret passageways to our dormitory. Once there I swap my skirt, blouse and jumper for dark denim jeans, a black top and my cozy black jumper. I lace my boots on and stuff a backpack with everything I took last time. I chuck the comms onto the bed and steal a new and improved set that Liz made.

"Sorry, Lizzie," I whisper, attaching it onto my freshly brushed ponytail. I tie my hair up with a purple elastic of Macey's and head out the door. After a few secret passageways, I leap down the front gates of the school. I can see Zach entering the cover of trees.

_1 week later_

"Bookworm?" I whisper. "Are you there? Duchess? Peacock? Come in, it's Chameleon. I have a secure tail on Goode Guy."

"I am so killing you when you get back here, Morgan," Duchess practically screams into the comms unit. I can't believe her. A whole week to cool off about it, and she is still mad? "Can you imagine the grief we went through last time you went missing? This time it will be double bad, because you and Zach will be missing!"

I roll my eyes, looking over to where Zach is crouched. I feel pretty proud of myself. I've taken care of my leg, and it doesn't bother me anymore, unless I strain it just a bit too much. But what I'm really proud about was the fact that I've been tailing Zach for a week and he hasn't noticed me! Actually, he did once, but I was wearing a wig, a karate uniform and thick glasses, so he didn't recognise me.

He slowly enters the abandoned warehouse. Dan wasn't kidding- they have changed locations. If they hadn't, then I guess that would just be called stupidity. He was wrong about it being in Europe, though. We're on the outskirts of New York City, and we're technically in New Jersey.

I mentally count to ten before following him in. I'm still in my jeans and hoodie with my backpack on my back. I swallow some pills from my pocket. Now I'm all set.

He enters the middle of the abandoned warehouse. He has a murderous look in his eye. Suddenly, something grabs me from behind. I try to scream and struggle, but a heavily scented cloth is held over my mouth. I feel sleepy… so sleepy… Next thing I know, a stranger is dragging me back into the shadows.

Zach's POV

A knife is in my right sneaker, my belt has a razor edge and there is a sharp spinning disk in my back pocket. I'm all ready to greet my mother. Boy, is she going to pay for hurting Cammie like that!

I hear laughing, and suddenly the dark abandoned warehouse isn't dark anymore… or abandoned. Standing on the catwalk above me, her hand hovering over an industrial looking light switch is my mother, flanked by two security guard men. The areas beside her and the security guards are pitch black. I snarl.

"My dear son," she calls. "How are you today? How are your assassination classes going? Oh that's right… you left an all-boys school for an all-girls school. How touching!"

"You are going to pay for hurting my Cammie like that!" I reach into my back pocket and fling the disk at her. It would have hit her, but she ducked, just slightly. She continues talking as if nothing has happened.

"You know, I wouldn't try to harm me in any way," she calls down to me.

"And why would that be?" I snarl back.

"Because I have someone who you might not want to get hurt." The next thing I know, I'm looking at an unconscious Cammie tied up.

I feel the anxiousness rise up in me, along with something else. Something that I felt for 6 months, and then again for a week. Fear?

"Oh my god," I say. The world starts spinning, but I make myself focus. "Cammie?" I call out. "Cammie!"

Cammie's POV

When I wake up again, I'm tied to a chair, this time with ropes instead of chains. I'm faintly aware of someone screaming my name. I hear laughing beside me. I feel like sinking back into that realm of darkness…

But wait… that laughing sounds familiar. I pull myself out of the darkness. So does that voice. I recognise the voice first, when I see Zach, looking pale and scared on the ground floor below me. I look up at see Zach's mum (this time in a black pencil skirt and a fluffy white blouse). I feel all the blood drain out of my face as the world stops. All I can see is her face, and remember some of those torturous moments a couple of weeks ago.

I snap back to reality as I realise that Zach needs help. "What's the matter, Cammie dear?" she asks. "You look a little pale." She raises a hand to stroke my cheek and I flinch. "I miss the fun we used to have. Maybe once I've gotten rid of my son, we can continue. Wouldn't that be fun?"

I remember that Zach is down there, counting on me saying a smart-alec response. "Oh yes," I agree. "I just loved being tortured by you. Maybe we should meet up again? Because, you know, I hear being tortured is very 'in' right now."

She slaps me on the face and I start seeing blinking stars. "See?" I continue on. "I'm on my way to being Miss Popularity. Wait till I tell all my friends. They're going to be soo jealous." Another slap, this time by one of the security guards. I'm pretty sure this time I pass out, but only for a couple of seconds.

When I come to, I realise that Mrs. Goode is halfway down the stairs to where Zach is standing. I'm left alone with the two security guards. I know I have some napotine patches in my pocket, so I just have to get out of this chair…

I bang my watch face on the side of the rope, and pretty soon I have one side free. The security guard guys are pretty stupid, because they don't realise what is happening until I have on arm free, reading to kick some security guard butt! One guard goes to stop me, and I kick out at him, hitting his stomach. He doubles over and I stand up, raising my other arm (still attached to the chair), hitting the other guard on the head. I reach into my pocket and slap a napotine patch onto his forehead.

I turn around, shrugging my arm out of the rope that still bound me to the chair. The other guy tackles me to the ground and lands on top of me. I struggle and manage to kick the back of his head. He stops pinning my arms down and I slap another napotine patch onto his forehead. He falls to the ground.

I run down to the main floor, where Zach and his mum are engaged in a fight. I take a running start and leap onto her back, sending her off Zach and falling to the floor. I land on top of her, but pretty soon I'm sent sprawling on the floor. She is attacking Zach again, and he falls to the ground, unconscious.

She heads over to me. She is missing one earring and shoe, her shirt is untucked from the pencil skirt and her once sophisticated bun is falling out of the bobby pins. Her lipstick is smudged and she has a feral look in her eyes.

"Zach!" I call out to him. I'm about to stand up and attack her again, but she lands on top of me heavily, pinning my shoulder blades to the ground with her knees. How she can do that in a pencil skirt is being me.

She pulls a knife out of her belt line. "I think I might carry on where I left off," she whispers in my ear. "When we get back to the interrogation chamber, I have some new toys I'd like to try on you. But for now, this will work!"


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

**I'm really, really sorry it's so short, but next chapter will be longer. It has Bex's POV, Cammie's POV, Zach's POV, Liz's POV, Macey's POV, then Bex's POV (again) and Zach's POV (again).**

She raises the knife and casts a long, deep cut down my right arm. Another across my back. Two on my neck and four on my left arm. She is just about to attack my right arm when something sends her sprawling on the ground a few meters away. Zach sends punch after punch on her face, smudging her makeup and causing a bruise to already appear above her eye.

"That's for hurting my girlfriend, _mum_," he snarls. I try to sit up, but I collapse back on the ground from the pain in my arms, neck and back. He rushes over to help me stand and she runs off, losing her other shoe on the way to the door.

She turns around, pulling a gun from the back of her skirt. I can see a gun lying a short ways away. Just a shot gun, nothing fancy. I race over to it and pick it up. "Cammie, no!" I can hear him yelling and trying to block me. I find the trigger and try to fit the gun into my hand. I shoot the same time she does. I feel victorious as I see the bullet land in her foot, spurting blood out and making her scream in pain. I feel a slight pressure in my side, but nothing more.

As I look down, I see the blood gaping from the wound in my side. Then the pain comes. I scream out, clutching at my side as I fall to the ground. Zach catches me, screaming my name. From all sides appear security guards, running in on us. I lay there uselessly as Zach tries to fight off eleven security guards.

I feel faint and dizzy from this loss of blood and I don't even register as I am slung over someone's shoulder. Zach does, though, and I can see him running towards me. The remaining (conscious) security guards make a close circle around me and my captor as we run off, leaving Zach screaming out for me. At least he's safe from these monsters…


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

**Wow, it's pretty long. Please comment to tell me if you like it or not. :) 3**

_5 weeks later_

Bex's POV

Zach comes over to talk to me. "Bex, look, I-"

I wheel on him, clutching my Indonesian textbook to my chest, my book bag slung over one shoulder. "Don't you dare talk to me, Zachary Goode!" I scream at him, causing Tina Walters to stop and get the gossip.

"But Bex, it wasn't me. Cammie just-"

I raise my book bag on him, whacking him with it, causing him to go stumbling back. Liz tries to pull me back but I don't stop now. I'm on a roll. Everything I've felt for Zachary Goode for the past 6 weeks flows out of me. Listening to Cammie talk as she followed him through the countryside, and then him returning back four weeks ago, without Cammie. Although, we knew that she was missing since Zach contacted us the day he and Cammie fought against his mum. He found Cammie's comm's unit lying in the bushes nearby and talked to us. Liz was the first to find out, then me and Macey.

I kick out with him, not even caring that I'm in a skirt. My leather covered shoe connects with the side of his head and he falls to the ground. I jump on top of him, pushing his shoulder blades into the cold stone floor. It's then I realise, as I lay punch after punch into him, of course, that he isn't even fighting back.

I feel someone tugging on me and telling me to stop, but I resist and keep throwing punches at him. Eventually I am yanked off my feet and held close to someone's chest. That someone is my boyfriend, Grant.

"It's okay, Bex," he whispers, stroking my hair. "It's okay." I burst into tears. Yes, you read right- I, Rebecca Baxter, burst into tears. Now, if you continue to ogle over it, I will make you burst into tears. Or just burst- really, I'm not picky!

He leads me up to my room, where he leaves me with two of my three best friends; Liz and Macey.

"Do you think she's alright?" Liz sniffles. Apparently, when I started crying she did too, and Macey had to awkwardly hug her until Jonas showed up.

"I don't know," Macey replies. "I mean, you heard Dan. Zach's mum has lots of new things to try on her, so I don't know-" she breaks off as Liz swallows a huge sob.

"This is Cammie we're talking about," I say. "She ran away last time."

"Yeah, after six months," Macey replies. "This time, I think they'll be a bit more harsh on her security."

"I hope she takes that as a compliment," Liz whispers. We both look at her funny. "I mean, Cam would like it if she knew they thought that she was too good and had to up her security, right?" Despite the situation, Macey and I both crack up.

I feel a slight pressure change on the bed as Grant sits down next to me. I see Jonas sitting tentatively on the bed beside Liz, who was blushing as he grabbed her hand. I snuggle into Grant's chest.

"Bex," he starts, "this is Cammie we're talking about. Do you really think she's going to let an ancient terrorist organisation keep her from her three best friends, boyfriend, mum, godfather and aunt?"

"No," I whisper back.

"And why is that?" he responds.

"Because she's Cammie."

Cammie's POV

I look up as the sun starts to rise on the horizon. I look at a nearby sign. I should be home by tomorrow morning, if I don't stop.

But I have to stop, so it'll take me another 2-3 days, at least.

I look down at my scratched and bruised body.

**Number of times I was whipped: 23  
Number of times I was slashed with a knife: 15  
Number of times I was stabbed by a very sharp, very pointy pin: 51  
Number of times I was burnt by a hot poker: 37  
Number of times I cried: 65  
Number of times I passed out: Many, many times  
Number of broken bones: 6 ribs, 1 leg (right), 1 arm (left)  
Number of times they almost drowned me but then pulled me back up: 43  
Number of times they threatened to hurt my friends: 56  
Number of times they murdered someone in front of me: 6  
Number of times they bribed me: 69  
Number of times I was starved for almost a week: 7  
Number of times I felt lots and lots of pain: All the time**

When I arrived I was sent to a sort of prisoner infirmary, where they managed to get the bullet out and stitch my side back up.

The sun has now almost fully risen in the sky. I shrug off my jumper but keep my jeans. I's either these (which are burnt, have a few holes and are dirty) or the other pair (which are really, really burnt, have slits everywhere and aren't dirty). I ran a brush through my hair. It feels a little greasy, but nothing too bad. I guess I got that from my mother, although she could probably go a month without washing it and still look like she belonged in a shampoo commercial.

I guess it wasn't too bad. I mean, I didn't get fed porridge, I had cereal, and I got two cups of water a day, and I was allowed to shower three times a week. I didn't get to choose what day, though. Last time, it was twice a fortnight.

I've been walking for the past week. I can honestly say that the four weeks I was at that place were worse than the six months that I was at the other place. I shudder. I look down at my arms, which look horrible. I hesitate, but then pull my jumper back over top. It's going to be a long three days.

_3 ½ days later_

Zach's POV

I open my Korean exercise book. I don't know why we have to keep taking all these language classes. I mean, we're already fluent, right?

I look at the picture taped on the inside of the book. I have my arm around Cammie's shoulder and she's laughing. It was from the time we all went ice skating. By 'we' I mean me, Cammie, Bex, Grant, Liz, Jonas, Macey and Preston. I feel tears welling up in my eyes and I hastily flick the page over. Looking over at the girls, they all look different. Empty, somehow. Lifeless.

Jonas and Grant have different classes to us, so we only ever see them in the breaks. I look up, realizing the teacher has already started the lesson. It's interrupted by a knock on the door. All our heads swivel, to where Headmistress Morgan is standing, teary eyed and a tissue clutched in her hand. She 'borrows' Bex, Liz, Mace and I and we follow her silently out the room. Along the way we also pick up Cammie's Aunt Abby and Mr. Solomon.

We near the hospital and I know it can't be good.

Cammie is lying on the bed. We all rush over to her, before noticing all the monitors and IV's stuck in her arms. The nurse is dusting the bedside table beside her and arranging a vase of orange and pink flowers. She looks horrible. Her hair is limp and lifeless, and scratches, bruises and scars cover most of her face, neck and her bare arms, which are placed by her side over the blanket, palms up.

"What happened to her?" Liz asks meakly. I look at the girls and see that they all have tears running down their faces. So do Cammie's mum and Aunt Abby. I'm surprised to see Mr. Solomon does too, and when I touch my own face, I feel the wet marks.

The nurse looks up, and rushes back into her office. Headmistress Morgan explains to us all. "When we found Cammie, she was being attacked by- by Circle members. Just outside of our school gates. The entire staff faculty rushed down to help her, as she wasn't in very good condition. Anyways, we don't know what happened, but when we found her, she was dying. We managed to get her inside as quickly as possible and hook her up to a life- life s- life support system." The Headmistress manages to choke out the last three words, and Aunt Abby gives her hug.

"But she will wake up, right?" Bex asks. There is no response. "Please, somebody, tell me she will wake up!"

"Of course she will," Mr. Solomon replies. "This is Cammie we're talking about. She followed Zach through how many states, just to find someone who she was scared to death of? She ran away to protect her friends. She was tortured for 6 months and still didn't tell the Circle of Cavan what they wanted to hear. She obviously escaped, even when her security was doubled. This is Cammie. What, on this earth, will stop her from waking up?"

_2 months later_

Liz's POV

I talk to Cammie absentmindedly as I rearrange all the flowers on her desk. There's a vase of red roses from Zach, some pink tulips from Macey, some camellias from Bex, daffodils from Grant and Jonas and lilies from me. We had to find another bedside table just to fit everything on. On a small chest at the bottom of her bed are other bunches of flowers, some single flowers, some in vases, some in bunches wrapped in cello tape and some tied with ribbons. Along with the flowers at the base of her bed are cards, boxes of chocolates, good-luck pins, lucky coins, magazines, books and her phone, which Macey had brought down from their room.

On her bedside tables are the cards from Zach, Bex, Macey, Mr. Solomon, her mum, her Aunt Abby and myself. There are also small boxes of chocolate and things from Cammie's room, like her brush, some hairbands, framed photos, her lava lamp and her diary.

I just chat about my day as I fiddle with the corner of her bed cover. It used to be a boring old white one, bed we convinced the nurse to let us bring down her blue one with all the flowers on it. We even brought down her ladybug pillow.

I tell her about Zach, Macey and Bex. I tell her about my desk work classes, casually swapping from English to French to German to Latin to Japanese to Italian and many other languages. At the end of an hour, I sigh, standing up. "Please wake up, Cammie," I whisper.

Macey's POV

I finish putting the lipgloss on my lips with a smack. I push my mascara, foundation and everything else back into my silver make-up kit. I've come down every morning to chat about what to wear, what nail polish would look best, whether I should have my hair wavy, straight, curly or in a ponytail and to do my make up every day for the past 2 months.

I want Cammie to tell me that I look beautiful no matter what I wear, and that you just have to look at the Blackthorne boys to prove it. I want her to sit up, shake her head and roll her eyes, demanding that I give her my make up so she can hide it. If she did, I would let her hide my make up and not try to find it. I would stop worrying about what I look like and concentrate on what I have. But no such luck.

Again.

Bex's POV

"Hey, Cammie," I whisper. I lean down to her and place a stray bit of hair behind her ear. "You can hear me, right? Come on, I know you can. Do you want to go to the P&E barn? Or how about we meet Liz in the science lab? Do you want to dye Zach's hair with hydrogen peroxide tonight when he's asleep? Come on, let's go!" But I know that she won't wake up. Not now. Maybe not ever.

I absently play with the flowers on her bedside table. If I were in a coma, then I'd have woken up by now. The pollen those flowers are sending out are really making my nose itchy.

I think about all the good times I've had with Cammie over the years, and how many more I was supposed to have with her. That's when I take her hand in mine and lean over her lifeless body, shaking with tears.

I let myself cry there for hours. Soon I can hear my friends calling me and I know I've missed dinner, but I don't stop. I just keep crying. I hear the creaking doors open and I can hear my boyfriend walk down the corridor. I know he lifts me up and hugs me as we walk back to my room. I know he kisses me goodnight, and the kiss is a long one. But I keep crying. I cry until I have no more tears left, and then I just fall asleep.

Zach's POV

"Afternoon, Miss Morgan," I say as I walk into the room, sitting at the stool by her bed. So many people have sat there in the past two months. Bex, Liz, Macey, Mr. Solomon, her mum, Aunt Abby, Anna Fetterman, Tina Walters, Grant, Jonas, Professor Buckingham, Mr. Smith, Dr. Fibs and just about everyone she knows. As I sit down, I want her to sit up and tell me off for getting the time wrong. I want her to say there are two minutes and forty three seconds before it's afternoon.

I sigh. Yesterday I came to visit her. And the day before, and the day before that, for the past two months. Ever since I came in with her friends, Aunt, mum and godfather and saw her lying lifelessly on the bed. When would she wake up? Would she wake up?

I clutch her hand desperately. I sat like that into the night, trying to remember everything I'd tried to make her wake up, and trying to think of other things to do. I'd read to her, I'd kissed her, I'd gotten rid of old flowers every day, I'd sent her phones texts, I'd played music for her, I'd talked to her in Farsi, I'd told her about our homework, I pretended I was going after my mother… what else could I do? I'd finished reading the whole Harry Potter series to her!

Eventually I feel myself falling into a dark realm of darkness; sleep. I dreamt of going out to Roseville with her, of not seeing Jimmy once, going to see a movie with her, kissing under the stars in the gazebo and sneaking back in to the Academy after midnight.

When I woke up again, it was almost morning. The sun's first rays of light were peeking in through the tall stained glass windows, casting funny colourful pictures on the dull stone floor.

"Look, Cammie," I whisper. "Isn't it pretty? You can't see it with your eyes closed, silly. Why don't you open your eyes and look at it? It's really beautiful Cammie…" When that doesn't work, I start to beg her to wake up.

"Please, Cammie," I whisper. "You're breaking my heart. This is all my fault; if I hadn't of left you wouldn't have followed me and they wouldn't have gotten you. I've been raised as an assassin, and I was taught to never show my emotions. And I never have, until I met you. You changed everything, from that day in the elevator when I offered you my m 'n' m's and you lead me straight to where Mr. Solomon was. Do you remember seeing me sitting on the bench in DC? All my friends were looking at Bex, but I only had eyes for you. I still do. Please, Cammie, wake up. I need you to wake up. I can't live like this, so please, please… wake up, Cammie… come on, Chameleon, wake up…


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

**WARNING: Lots of Zammie!**

Cammie's POV

It's dark, it's just so dark. And I can hear an angel calling me. Telling me he loves me and that he can't live without me. I feel the dark pressure being lifted off me and the pinch of needles in my arms. I can feel a hand in mine, and someone stroking my hair. It takes a while, but then my eyes finally flutter open, and look into the most perfect eyes in the world.

I lift my head off my ladybug pillow (how did that get here?) and take in the flowers, cards and chocolates at the foot of my bed and on the two bedside tables beside me. An aching pain fills my side and leg and I sit up all the way, doubling over in pain.

When I sit back up again, he's just staring at me, our hands still attached. "It's you," he whispers. "Oh my god, you're still alive!" He reaches up and pushes my hair behind my ear.

"Of course I'm still alive," I say. "Oww… my head really hurts."

He nods. "You got hit in the head just outside the gates. That's why you… you were…"

"What?" I ask him.

"Cammie," he starts, "you were in a coma for 5 weeks."

I gasp. The world starts spinning around. "5 weeks?" I manage to spit out. He nods.

"Cammie," he whispers. "Cammie, Cammie, Cammie, Cammie."

"I'm right here," I whisper back. "What is it."

"Nothing," he sighs. "I just feel so relieved that you're alive!"

I open my mouth to reply, but suddenly we're kissing. He knots his fingers up in my hair, not seeming to mind that it still has small pieces of dirt and twigs in it, or that it hasn't been washed in ages. He presses up against my body, holding me close. I lean into his chest, sighing.

"Cammie," he whispers. "Oh my god, Cammie. You scared me half to death, Gallagher Girl." I look up at him, smiling, as he uses my old nickname. As I turn my head to face him he kisses me again. A strong, passionate, long kiss. Before I know it, his shirt is on the floor and I'm running my hands up his bare chest, feeling how the muscles flex under my fingers. And then we're kissing again.

I'm faintly aware of his hands up my shirt, at the small of my back, but I take no notice. My fingers slide up from his chest to his face and I push his head closer to mine. I feel his hands slide out from under my shirt so they can rise higher, closer to my neck, and he's pushing me closer to him as well.

We finally break away. He tugs back on his shirt and leaves to get my friends. "While I'm gone, you better not go running off again, understand?" I smile and nod. As soon as he leaves, I collapse back onto the pillows. The pain is unbearable, but the thought of seeing my friends again makes it alright.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Thank you so much to the dedicated readers that have reached this far. I know how annoying I must of been, and how amateur-ish my writing is, but thank you anyways to the people who added me to their favourites and followed my story anyways.**

**Thank you to:**

**1) Jessica Cesca :) She always reads my stories and tells me I'm a good writer even when I'm not and my stories, to put it frankly, stink. But thank you anyways for being such a good friend :) Love you lots! xox**

**2) The people who started off with chapter 1 and have continued reading every time I posted a new chapter. Thanks so much! I know how frustrating it must have been at times but... thanks anyways :) I decided it was better to just add the rest of the chapters tonight so I didn't have this nagging at me for ages. Hope you liked it :D**

**3) The people who just read all 16 chapters of that at once, and who haven't been there since the beginning. I know it seems weird to everyone else, thanking people who haven't been there since chapter 1, but I'm going to thank you, especially if you reached this far. Thanks so much!**

**So please leave a comment telling me if you liked it, hated it or what parts you liked, didn't like... Please do! It only takes you two seconds, but it keeps me happy all day :) Love you all! xox**


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